The Innocents
by Skye1963
Summary: AU-Michael and his brothers decided that instead of having the Vessels born human, they asked their Father that the boys be born as Angels. Uriel became angry and stole the two fledglings from Heaven only to have the fall into the hands of John and Mary Winchester. The boys were safe until one day, Sammy decided to go with his uncle on a hunt, not suspecting that it was a trap.
1. Chapter 1

_As usual I've borrowed Eric Kripke's toys to play with. Hope you like this story. My beta had lost her computer access so this is un-beta'd._

The Innocents

Chapter One

Mary Winchester silently crept in the abandoned house. John was behind her with his machete ready while Rufus, Bobby and Jim were looking downstairs. They knew the house was being used by a nest of vampires so they were being very careful. Contrary to the movies and popular books, vampires could move around in the daylight and were only killed by cutting their heads off. Dead man's blood could paralyze them, though. So far, the group had taken out most of the nest but the Alpha and her mate was still missing and they needed to find them otherwise the two would come after them.

What clued the hunters in about the vampires was a call from a doctor friend of Rufus Turner. He had been called and asked to come out for a house call. It seemed that the vampires had a couple of children in their care and the youngest child had gotten very sick. When the doctor had declined to do the house call, the Alpha _insisted_ on his coming to the house by showing him her teeth and bringing him there. When he got there, she stayed in the room while he looked at the tiny boy laying in the crib. The baby had a case of bronchitis for which the doctor prescribed antibiotics and breathing treatments. The Alpha sent one of her nest-mates to get the items then she warned him never to say anything or the whole nest would come to his house and "have dinner with his family" as they put it. She insisted that he continue to treat the baby, which he did but the child was still sick. Since he had had dealings with hunters before, he called Rufus for help. He knew that if the child died, so would the doctor and his family.

Rufus called Bobby who got some friends together then met them at the doctor's house. The doctor told them where to find the nest and that the children were being held in a room on the second floor. There were two children, he said. The oldest was about five or six with blond hair and green eyes. The baby was one or two with dark hair and hazel eyes. Both were kept in the same room that was made up as a nursery. The children were clean and fed but, on the older one, he had found some scars that told him the child had been abused in the past. The only thing he could say on that was unless the vampires had them for a while they were not the ones to abuse him.

Now the group was prowling the house, looking for the children and the heads of the nest. Mary knew that she had found something when she found a door that was locked. She gestured to John who got out his picks and went to work on the lock. When he was through, he stepped back and Mary opened the door carefully. Peeking in, she saw a crib on the far wall with two children sleeping in it. Looking back at her husband, she nodded to indicate that they had found the kids.

Carefully, as to not wake the two children, Mary crept into the room but found that her efforts were not enough. The older child, who looked to be about five or six, was staring at her with huge green eyes. While she watched, he put the other child behind him like he was protecting the baby. When he was moved, the baby woke up and she could see the fever in his glassy, hazel eyes. Both children looked at her with mistrust.

Walking slowly to where the children were, Mary started to talk, keeping her voice soft and low so she wouldn't scare them, "Hi there. My name is Mary. Could you tell me yours?" Neither child answered. She didn't expect the younger one to talk, he looked to be around one or two but she had hoped that the older one would answer her. "I'm not going to hurt you or your friend," she said to the older child. "I just want to make sure you two are okay." She hoped she could put the children at ease but the older one just got agitated the closer she got. When she was a foot away from them, he stood on the mattress and pulled a knife that had been hidden under a blanket, clearly showing that he was acting as a protector. Mary stopped then started to look at him.

The older boy was blond with longish hair. He was thin and dressed in pajamas that hung on his small frame. On each of his wrists there was a silver looking bracelet that had engravings on them. She could also see that the band on his right wrist had what looked like charms on it but the left band was plain except for what looked like two engravings. When she looked at the baby, she could see he also had bands on both wrists. The bands on both children were seamless and she wondered who would have given them bracelets that couldn't be taken off.

As she looked closer at the baby, she noticed that he too was thin and had beautiful long chocolate brown hair. Wondering where their parents were or if the vampires had killed them, she inched closer when it happened. The older one, clearly threatened by her nearness, displayed wings that hid the baby from her sight. The wings were beautiful, white with streaks of green running through each feather.

Mary was startled and stopped for a second before she realized that the display was for protection of the baby. She took a breath then said, "Hey, little one. Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you." Behind her, John nodded his agreement. There was something about the boy, even with the wings, that cried out to his soul to nurture and love. The boy looked at her then at John before lowering his knife and wings. Stepping aside, he let Mary get close to the baby. She looked at him questioningly then got to the side of the crib.

Besides being thin, she noticed the baby was pale with two rosy cheeks. He had sweat on his forehead and his breathing was labored. Without thinking, Mary picked the baby up and cuddled him. The older child was shocked and made a move as to go after her but John was there and caught him up. "Shh, buddy! It's okay, she won't hurt your friend but he's sick and needs help. Please let us help you both. Hey! I bet you would like something to eat," John rambled. Then he pulled a bag of candy from his pocket. Pouring some onto his hand, he offered it to the older boy. The boy picked one up then looked at the man holding him. Sniffing the candy to make sure it was okay, the boy put it in his mouth. He smiled at the sweet taste then reached for another one. John smiled at the little boy and let him take another piece.

As the Winchesters were getting acquainted with the children, the other hunters, having cleared the house, came into the room. The child in John's arms became agitated when he saw the strangers and his wings came back out as he twisted to get to the baby. John just held him close and whispered in his ear to calm the boy down. Jim was surprised at the wings and wanted a closer look but John just shook his head so Jim kept his distance.

"John, we need to get the boys out of here. The baby is burning up with a fever," Mary said in a hushed voice so she wouldn't scare the children.

"Okay, babe, let's get out of here. Hey, Bobby, could you look around and see if there is any medicine for the kid? We also should get any stuff that may be theirs, clothes, food, and toys. Jim, could you grab their bedding so we can wrap them up in the car?" John asked. The others looked around and gathered everything that was for the kids, then the group left after the children were wrapped in the blankets. When they got to the cars, Mary sat in the back holding the baby while the older child sat next to her with his hand on the baby's leg. John talked to the other Hunters. He knew they had booked a couple of rooms but with the children he wondered if it would be a better idea to just get their stuff and head to Blue Earth. Jim had a couple of doctor friends there that knew about Hunters and they would be able to help with the children. The other Hunters agreed that going to Jim's would be the best course of action, it not only would keep the questions down but the vampires that they hadn't found would not be able to follow them easily. With the decision made, John got in the Impala with Jim while Bobby and Rufus got into Bobby's truck. As they pulled away from the now burning house, they didn't know that the best and most difficult days lay ahead.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

It took the group a few days before they reached Blue Earth. During that time, the two children were quiet, almost as if they were mute. Even when the baby cried, he made no sound and it worried Mary since ordinary children made noise, even if it was screaming or giggling. It was as if the children had been abused when they made noise. That thought occurred to both Winchesters and it made their blood boil to think someone had terrorized two children so badly that they tried to disappear, to not be noticed.

The first morning after the children had been rescued, John pulled into a diner with the others following him. Mary got out with the children and asked John to get the bag with their clothes. She said they needed to be cleaned and their clothes changed so they wouldn't get cold. She also asked for the baby's medicine and a couple of the bottles. John smiled at his wife taking charge of the children. It had been a sorrow in their lives when they both found out they were unable to have children. They had discussed adoption at one point but, like John said, it would have been unfair for them to bring children into their lifestyle as Hunters. Now, John and Mary both had adopted the children for their own without even a second thought even though they really didn't know it.

After Mary got back from the diner's bathroom with the boys, everyone sat at a booth and Jim took a look at the bracelets the children had on. Holding up the baby's left arm, he said, "This bracelet probably has names written on them. I can't read it because it's actually written in Angelic script." Then he put that arm down carefully and held up the other, "These symbols I do recognize. They are the names of Angels, specifically of Michael, Gabriel, Castiel, and Balthazar. Whoever put them on these boys wanted them protected."

"Why make the bracelets so that they can't be removed and what will happen when they start to grow?" Mary asked with concern in her voice.

Bobby then reached for the older boy's wrist. The young child resisted until John quietly said he could trust the older hunter. Bobby carefully touched and tugged on the bracelet then he put the arm down. "I think that these bracelets were designed to stretch or grow as the boys grow. If you look under this kid's bracelets, you'll notice that the skin is lighter than the rest of him. I think they were probably given these things when they were born."

Just then a waitress came over to take their orders, efficiently stopping their conversation. The adults ordered their meal then Mary asked for chocolate chip pancakes and apple juice for the five year old. After the waitress went to put their orders in, she got a bottle out of the bag that John brought in and started to feed the baby. John watched her as she took care of the child thinking that she was definitely a natural at being a mother. When the orders came, John with no thought as to what he was doing, automatically started to cut the pancakes up into smaller pieces for the older boy. Watching the Winchesters interact with the children, the other hunters came to the conclusion that John and Mary now had the children they had so desperately wanted and needed.

While they were eating, John asked, "What about the wings? We know the older boy has them but how about the baby?

Mary was able to answer that one, "He does, tiny white wings that are streaked with hazel, just like his eyes. They are beautiful."

"We'll want to look at them when we get to Blue Earth," Jim said. He was starting to get an idea of what they were dealing with but he needed to consult a very old book to confirm his suspicions. "For now, I don't believe they are evil. In fact, I believe we may be looking at children who are very special and, if I'm right, we'll need to make sure they are protected." The others nodded in agreement.

The rest of the trip was uneventful though the hunters noticed a few more things about the boys. One was the older child was very protective of the baby, not letting anyone close to him unless they were part of the group that had rescued them. One woman approached Mary outside a gas station while she was holding the baby but the older boy put himself between the strange woman and Mary. No matter what Mary said, he would not let the woman get close to the baby.

The older boy also was able to tell when the baby needed something even before Mary did. He would get a bottle out or a diaper and start attending to the baby's needs before any sign was given. Mary watched the boys and knew that the baby hadn't given any indication that he needed something but the older child always was there for him.

It wasn't just the older boy but the baby also had a strange way about him. No matter where the older boy was, the baby would always face him, even when they slept. The baby also squirmed more when the older child wasn't in his immediate sight. Jim started to understand more about the children as the trip continued but, like before, he kept his opinions to himself until he could confirm them.

SDSDSDSDSDSDSD

When they got to Jim's place, Mary took the boys up to the room she and John shared when they were in Blue Earth, leaving John to bring in the duffles and the boys' things. Jim, Rufus and Bobby went to the study where Jim got out his reference book he had been longing for while Bobby traced the markings that he had seen on the bracelets. After twenty minutes of searching, Jim finally found what he was looking for. Then looking at the markings Bobby had drawn, he smiled.

"The markings are names, just like I thought," Jim said. "On the older boy's bracelet, the markings that are first mean From The Valley and the other markings mean God Has Heard. In other words, Dean and Samuel. On the baby's bracelet, the markings are reversed to read Samuel and Dean. According to the book, the order shows what their names are and that they are brothers. Since Dean's name is first on the older child's bracelet, that would be his name. The baby's name is Samuel since that name comes first on his bracelet."

"What kind of markings are they?" Bobby wanted to know.

"The book confirms they are Angelic script. From everything I have read, I'm beginning to believe that those two boys are actually Angelic fledglings," Jim said with awe in his voice. As much as he believed in God, it was very hard for him to accept that he had two tiny Angels in his home.

"What the Hell do you mean?" Rufus asked in a loud voice.

"I'm saying that we have genuine proof of God and Heaven just upstairs with John and Mary. I'm saying that we need to protect them because they should not be here. Someone or something must have stolen them from their protectors," Jim explained.

"Huh?" Bobby asked.

"The names on their other bracelets, those particular Angels are the ones who had protected and raised the boys. I don't know what kind of power it took to steal them from two protective Archangels and two warrior Angels but it had to pack some kind of wallop otherwise those two children would still be in Heaven," Jim said patiently.

"Then we need to get rid of them," Rufus said roughly. He didn't like the idea of something supernatural threatening his friends, especially not the ones he came to feel were his family.

"No, if they are here and with us, I believe that it is meant that we are to keep them until their brothers come for them," Jim said heatedly. "I just wish I knew who took them away from Heaven and why." Bobby and Rufus looked as worried as Jim felt.

While the other hunters were researching the markings on the bracelets, John and Mary got the boys bathed. The baby was easy since he felt better with the cool water being poured on him. Carefully, Mary had John turn him over so she could wash his wings. When the water hit the wings, the baby shivered and shook them out, splashing John in the face. Giggling, Mary quickly finished and together they got the baby out of the tub, dried and into warm clothes. Then it was the five year old's turn. He didn't cooperate, hating being naked and under the eyes of strangers, even if he did have good feelings for them. Mary washed the boy, not taking any guff from him but she was also gentle. When she got to his back, she saw scars that told her this boy had been beaten many times. Blinking back tears, she carefully stretched his wings to wash them. The boy didn't like his wings being touched and tried to retract them. It would have gone badly except that John began to talk softly to the boy, distracting him from Mary's ministrations. Finally, when she deemed him clean, the boy was taken out of the warm water and dried. Then he too was given warm clothes. When they got back into the room, Mary watched in astonishment as the older boy picked up a soft brush and began to gently brush the baby's wings. After watching him for a few minutes, Mary picked up another brush and started to groom his wings. The older boy paused when he felt the brushing, then purring under his breath, he started back with his grooming of the baby who also started to purr. John smiled as he heard the sounds of contentment fill the room.

John decided to get the boys something to eat before they were put down to sleep. Like Mary, he didn't like the fact they were both very thin even though the evidence at the vampires' nest showed they had been taken care of. In the kitchen, he put a bottle in a pan of water then started the burner. While the bottle was heating up, he made a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for the older child. Pouring a glass of milk, he put everything on a tray before checking the baby's bottle. When he deemed the temperature good, he put that on the tray then carried it back to the room. Mary was grateful that John had the foresight to get the children some food. Later, she would have to go out and get some formula and cereal for the baby since he should have been eating some soft foods by now but she didn't think his stomach could take much more than the cereal. It was part of the reason he was thin, she thought. While she fed the baby, she watched her loving spouse try to feed the five year old. The child had a hard time eating the sandwich, almost like he never ate one before. Finally, John was able to get a bite into the child whose face lit up like a candle. Grabbing a sandwich square, he ate it fast with a dreamy look on his face. John had no trouble getting the child to drink the milk except that he kept wanting to eat, not drink. Mary laughed at the child's antics and John gave her his "You're not helping" look.

It took an hour to get the children fed, cleaned and read to before they would go to sleep. Mary volunteered to stay with them while John went downstairs to find out what the others knew. Taking a look at the beautiful picture his wife and the children presented, he quietly closed the door. As he went down the stairs, he thought about the scene he had just left. He didn't know if the children's parents would be able to find them but he swore, even though it hurt to give them up. He started to rethink his stand on adopting children. It would make Mary so very happy, he saw that now.

John found the other hunters in Jim's study by following the sound of their voices. Quietly, he stepped in as Bobby was saying, "…can we expect, Jim? If they're Angels, won't their Father come for them?"

"What do you mean Angels? Jim?" John asked in astonishment as he walked into the room.

"Hi, John. Everything okay with the boys?" Jim countered with his own question.

"Yeah, they had a bath, some food and now Mary's watching them while they take a nap. Now, how about answering my question," John said tenaciously.

"Well, the first thing you will want to know is that the older child's name is Dean and the baby is Samuel. They are brothers and, we believe, they are Angelic fledglings," Jim thought John couldn't get any paler as he continued. "The bracelets on their right wrists show the names of their closest brothers or protectors. But what is worrying us is that someone or something was able to take these children away from Heaven, away from two Archangels and two Warrior Angels. We just don't know what we are dealing with. And, as for Bobby's question, all I can say is that if God wants them back, we would never have run into them in the first place. God would never have let them out of Heaven in the first place unless there was a reason for it."

"Jim, I hate to tell you this but I sincerely doubt there is a God," John said as gently as he could.

"Fair enough but tell me this. If there isn't a God, why do we have tiny Angels upstairs with Mary right now?" Jim countered. With that question, he knew that he had gotten through to the other Hunters.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

The next few days were hard on everyone. First, one of Jim's physician friends was called because the baby just wasn't getting any better and Mary was starting to panic. Dr. Kevin Macy was intimately acquainted with the Supernatural but what he saw was beyond him. He became fixated on the wings both children had until John nudged him back to business with a not-so-friendly look. Both boys were underweight and Dr. Macy prescribed vitamins and protein drinks for the older boy, along with small, well-balanced meals with high caloric, easily digestible snacks in between the meals. He said that if they tried to give the child too much at once, the child could get very sick. Usually someone who was starving would get a liquid diet for a while before feeding them solids but since the child already had some solid food without any kind of problem, the doctor surmised that he had been fed something but just not enough.

The baby, on the other hand, had never been graduated to solid foods having been kept on the bottle past the time he should have been eating cereals, fruits, and vegetables. Because of the poor diet, the baby didn't have the strength to fight off the bronchitis. Mary was given instructions to feed the baby cereal before giving him a bottle. She was also told to give the baby some Pediasure to keep him hydrated. Dr. Macy said that if he tolerated the food well, Mary could start giving him some applesauce and bananas. The doctor gave her a schedule and reminded her that small meals would help the small child more than larger ones would.

Then, Dr. Macy, after John took the older child out, gave the baby a shot of vitamins and antibiotics to help fight the illness. After those shots were done, he gave the baby the first Well-Child shots since nobody knew if he had been given those. The older child also had been given the immunization shots and ended up giving the doctor and John both black eyes. After giving the new parents the prescriptions for the baby and a promise to stop in again the next day, the doctor went home to nurse his eye.

For the rest of the day, the children were fussy and very put out. The older child, Dean, refused to eat or even look at anyone while the baby, Samuel, curled in a tight ball and struggled against Mary's attempt to calm him down. The boys stayed curled together and Mary's eyes were filled with tears as she struggled to calm them down and trust her enough to eat again. Jim took pity on her and said, "Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast. Try singing to them." Mary gave Jim a grateful look then she started to sing.

At first, she tried many of the lullabies and children's songs that she remembered from her own childhood but the boys weren't having any of them. Finally, in frustration and at the end of her rope, she sang to them her favorite Beatles song, "Hey, Jude". After she was done with the song, she noticed both boys watching her and listening. Calmly, she picked up a piece of hot dog that was supposed to be Dean's dinner and gave it to him. Mary silently cheered as the boy put it in his mouth and began to chew. Then, as he reached for another piece, she picked Samuel up and gave him a bottle that had a formula/cereal mix in it. The baby, after a couple of seconds, took the bottle and began to drink.

Jim watched the trio for a few minutes then went and retrieved a few plush toys from the Church's nursery. Bringing them back to Mary and the boys, he put the toys in small hands. Dean, at first, didn't know what to make of the toy until he squeezed it and felt how soft the toy was. Then he smiled at Jim and cuddled the toy. Samuel put his toy in his mouth and began to chew giving Mary a clue to part of his problems, he was teething. She remembered reading somewhere that teething could cause a slight rise in temperature. Making a mental note to have John pick up a teething ring, she put the baby down to get some of his medication. It took a bit of a struggle but she was able to give him some of the Children's Tylenol then, after he fell asleep, she put him in the middle of her bed. Dean, seeing his brother sleeping, also got on the bed and curled up with Samuel.

John also had his problems with the boys. Since Dean saw the doctor's visit and subsequent shots as a betrayal, he kept his distance from the man while also keeping his brother away. John started to feel as overwhelmed as Mary had until Bobby told him to do something interesting and to ignore the children. It worked. After watching John sit down and play with some cars, Dean got curious and started to edge towards the man. It took a couple of hours but finally the little boy sat on the floor and played with the man. Dean was the easy one, it was found. Samuel didn't trust anyone who hurt him or his brother. He struggled against John every time the man tried to pick him up. Rufus was the one who rescued the poor guy. John was near tears until the other Hunter told him that babies needed to be touched. Rufus said that if John laid next to the baby and just stroked his head or back, the baby might calm down for him. John looked at the Hunter as if he grew another head. Rufus just shrugged and told him that his own parents used to do that whenever he was out of sorts. He remembered how loved he felt and how protected. John was out of ideas and tried Rufus'. He was astonished that, after an hour, the baby was cuddling in his arms as he kept up the stroking motion.

The doctor, on the other hand, didn't have the luxury of trying to soothe the two strange children so when he came back the next day to check on the baby, Dean stood in front of him refusing to let him anywhere near Samuel. Finally, he had to give his stethoscope to Mary and instruct her on the tests he wanted to perform. Since the tests were noninvasive, Dean was perfectly happy to let her do them. After learning that the baby's temperature had gone down and that his lungs seemed less noisy, he told Mary to keep up with the medication and to let him know if he seemed to get worse. Mary then told him that she thought Samuel was teething and the doctor said to get some Children's Ambasol to rub on the child's gums. He also confirmed her idea of a teething ring, albeit one that could be put in the freezer since most children found that something cold felt good on their gums. Glancing at Dean, the doctor promised to be back in a few days to check on their progress.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

After Samuel healed from the bronchitis, things got a bit easier especially since Dean started to trust the others with his brother but they still didn't let each other out of their sights. John found that out when he tried to take Samuel to the bathroom to clean up while Dean was asleep. When the bedroom door closed, Dean woke up and, not finding his baby brother next to him, had a panic attack that left the room in shambles. Samuel wasn't much better, having left his marks on John from the struggle he put up when the man took him away from Dean. When John told Jim what happened, the pastor wondered if it was so much a brother thing as an angel thing. After all, the boys had been kidnapped from their family.

Because Jim felt that it was unhealthy for the boys to be stuck in one room, he enlisted Bobby and Rufus' help to baby and toddler proof his home. Then he convinced Mary to let the boys play in the living room. Everyone was happy at first to find out the baby could crawl until he started to find things that were put away for his and his brother's safety. The first time Jim almost had a heart attack was when he went to the study for a book and found the children on top of his bookcase, playing with the weapons that were put there seemingly out of the reach of the children. John had to help him get the kids down since they decided to play a game of keep away from Jim, crawling away whenever he got close to them. It didn't help that Bobby and Rufus ended up on the floor rolling in laughter.

Rufus was the next to grow grey hairs when he found them in his room, the baby sucking on one of his guns. Carefully, as to not startle the child, he crept in and got the gun away from Samuel. It wasn't easy to wrestle away as he had thought it would be, especially when Dean started to attack him. John again came to the rescue and, after fifteen minutes of fighting, the baby finally gave the gun up in favor for his favorite toy.

All of the Hunters began to pray for help after having to clean up torn books, flour everywhere, water flowing from taps left open, weapons still found even after being locked away, and other messes the children got into. Mary had read that children were naturally curious but that didn't really explain why these kids were so into everything but Jim had the idea that it was because the human things were so different than the ones in Heaven. Good theory but it really didn't help.

Talking to the children and even putting them in time-out didn't help since neither child seemed to understand that they were doing something wrong so after cleaning the house for what seemed like the hundredth time one day, Jim suggested letting the children play in the nursery at the Church. Mary tiredly agreed and took them to the small room that had so many toys to play with. She sat down in a chair and watched the little ones play until she fell asleep. She woke up with a start and looked around to find that the boys had disappeared. Panicking, she left the room to get John only to find the boys in the Church proper, sitting under one of the windows and looking at a Bible that had been left by one of the Parishioners. It almost looked as if the boys were reading it but when Mary saw that it was written in Latin, she knew that it wasn't possible. She went to get a Dr. Seuss book to substitute it for the Bible but the boys put up a fight.

"Okay, okay, I give," she laughed. Then she really watched them and realized that they _were_ reading it. Not just the older child but the baby too and that just freaked her out a bit. The longer she watched, the more a crazy notion came into her head. Finally, she acted on it and asked, "Potest hanc legistis?" (can you read this?)

The older child looked up in surprise and said to her surprise, "Sic." (yes)

That was the first time either child had made a noise in anyone's presence. Mary decided to ask a few more questions, hoping her Latin would hold up, "Utrumque vestrum?" (both of you?)

"Sic" (yes)

Mary was surprised but then decided to ask a couple of questions that had been bothering all of the Hunters, "Qui tulit te a familia?" (who took you from your family)

The baby was the one to answer in a soft but clear voice, "Malus frater, daemon." (bad brother, demon)

She didn't know what to think but she pressed on for more answers, "Quomodo fratres excipiat?" (how can we get hold of your brothers)

Dean said with an air of confidence, "Rogare Pater." (ask Father)

Then Samuel said, "Gratias ago vos." (thank you)

Mary was confused, "Cur?" (why)

Dean answered, "Nos adiuvat." (for helping us)

Mary asked one more question. One that had been plaguing everyone since Jim brought up the possibility, "Estis vos angeli?" (are you angels)

Dean answered again, "Fratirbus nostris vocare nos pulli." (Our brothers call us fledglings) He grinned then yawned. Mary stood up and, picking Samuel up, brought the boys back to the Rectory for a nap.

After the boys were put down for their naps, Mary went to find John and Jim. Rufus and Bobby had to leave for another hunt then Bobby was going to go back to his place for a while. When she found them, they were out in the garage working on the Impala, giving her an oil change. "The boys speak Latin," Mary said breathlessly.

"What, who?" John asked.

"The boys. They speak Latin," Mary repeated. "We were in the Church at the time and I found them reading a Bible that was written in Latin. I don't know why I did it but I asked them in Latin if they could read it and Dean said yes. He said it in Latin, John. And Samuel, oh God, Samuel can also read and speak Latin. He's only a year old! How can that be?"

"I don't know. Maybe they age differently than we do," Jim said thoughtfully.

"That reminds me. Jim, you were right in thinking they are Angels. I asked them and they said that their brothers would call them fledglings," Mary was excited about her finding. "They thanked us, John. Thanked us for helping them." John carefully hugged his beautiful wife since he had oil on his hands.

Jim was still worried about who had taken the boys and he asked Mary, "Did they say anything about who took them from their brothers?"

Mary stepped away from John and frowned, "Yeah, Samuel said that a bad brother and a demon did it."

"Mar, how do we get in touch with their brothers?" John asked quietly. It broke his heart to think they would have to give the boys up but they needed to be with their family.

Mary looked up at John with tears in her eyes, "Dean said to ask their Father."

_It had been eight months since the boys disappeared. Gabriel, Michael, Castiel and Balthazar knew the boys weren't in Heaven as they had looked everywhere, even in the Garden. Finally, the four came to the conclusion that their brothers were either on Earth or in Hell. They had found signs that Dean and Samuel had been taken against their will since no fledgling could voluntarily leave Heaven. It was Father's idea of a safety gate on the stairs. That meant that one of their siblings had to do the deed. Michael told Gabriel and Castiel to start searching the Earth for their much younger brothers while he and Balthazar looked for the traitor._

_Gabriel and Castiel decided to split the Earth into two with Gabriel taking the Northern Hemisphere and Castiel the South. Because Castiel had spent little time on Earth, Gabriel gave him the names of some contacts among the demigods then he went to renew some old friendships in order to get help looking for the fledglings. Most of the demigods were quick to help, they remembered when Castiel had been a fledgling who had found his way to Earth. Fledglings have no realization of how powerful they really are and besides, nobody held Atlantis against the young Angel even though he still felt guilty about it. Castiel's little adventure was the reason that Father put up the safety gate. _

_Fledglings were very curious and because of that curiosity, very destructive. They would get into everything if they didn't have an older brother or sister with them at all times and whatever had caught their fancy at the time would be taken apart to see how it worked. Hence the destruction of Atlantis by Castiel. Hells, Michael was responsible for the Khyber Belt while Gabriel had taken Saturn apart. Balthazar caused Venus to have its poisonous atmosphere to name a few incidents. There were even a few black holes that were attributed to Angelic fledglings._

_It was also because of Castiel that the demigods knew not to ask the Angels why they couldn't just feel where their brothers were. Metatron had explained to them that a fledgling's Grace was diffused, not as solid as when he was an adult. Their minds also was scattered like any other child born. That made them impossible to feel or find like they would an adult Angel. If a fledgling was lost, the search had to be physically done._

_After a month on Earth, Gabriel heard from Quetzalcoatl that a demon had been killed by a nest of vampires. Said demon was rumored to have had two children locked in a small room and the vampires had taken the kids with them after they killed the demon. Gabriel thanked the Q-man (as he called him) and went to find Castiel who was in Australia at the time. The Angels located the vampire nest easily only to find it destroyed with the Alpha and her mate the only survivors. The Alpha told the Angels that she had felt bad for the children and took them for her own but Hunters had found them while destroying the nest. She and her mate followed the Hunters to make sure they were being good to the children, otherwise, she said, they would have killed the humans and retaken the children. When asked if the vampires knew where the children were, they told the Angels that the last time they saw the boys was in Blue Earth, Minnesota. Gabriel contacted Michael and Balthazar to tell them they had a lead on their brothers. Then he and Castiel went to Blue Earth._

When John went out to the garage one morning, he found the boys next to a dismantled car. Not the Impala, thank God but still… He remembered that Mary told them the boys understood Latin and, dredging up his knowledge of conversational Latin he asked them why they took the car apart. Dean looked up at the furious man and said they wanted to see how it worked. He said it so innocently that John was stopped in mid-rant and started to laugh. Then he said, "Don't operor ut iterum, vos could have gotten…vulnero" (don't do that, you could have gotten hurt) butchering the language. The boys looked at each other in puzzlement then started to laugh. They figured out what the man was trying to say but it came out so badly that it was funny.

After his laughter died down, Dean asked, "Cur?" (why)

John tried again, "Quoniam it's periculosus. (because it's dangerous)

The boys were still giggling when Jim came out and saw the mess. John explained why the boys were laughing and Jim looked at them seriously and said, "Sed hoc modo irridere inhumanus. (it's impolite to laugh at this man now) Ipse est sollicitus est salute vestra. (he is concerned about your safety) Placere deprecarentur ad eum (please apologize to him)."

John was astounded when the boys looked at the ground as if they were ashamed, "Dolemus," (we are sorry) the boys said together.

"Jim, would you translate for me?" John asked not wanting to trust his scant Latin. Jim nodded then John looked at the boys and said, "It's fine. Just don't do it again." (Est bysso. Tantum non aluid apponet.) Both boys nodded in agreement then John picked up Samuel and led his brother into the Rectory to be cleaned.

When the boys and John left, Jim let out the laughter that had been building in him since he walked into the garage. He couldn't believe what those two had done and he wondered how their guardians ever put up with them. Finally he was able to calm down and catch his breath. Looking up, he prayed, "Give us patience and strength to endure these two very precious children." Then he went in to help clean the boys. He just hoped they hadn't gotten any grease on their wings otherwise they would have to get some Dawn and a couple of old brushes to get it out. He also needed to call Bobby to help them put the car back together.

_Jim Murphy's prayer was heard and Michael, along with Balthazar went to meet their brothers on the way to Blue Earth. They now had proof of where the fledglings were and they all hoped that the damage wasn't too great._

When Jim called and explained about the car, Bobby also had to laugh then he decided to help the three Hunters out by getting some toys for the children. He stopped at the mall in Sioux Falls and bought Tinker Toys, Lincoln Logs, and a couple of Erector Sets. He also bought them a couple of used small appliances that they could take apart. Because Jim said they could read but didn't know English, he also got them some books and flashcards to teach them the language.

It took him about six hours to get to Blue Earth and when he got there, he went to the garage immediately. He looked at the dismantled car in wonder but it wasn't quite the surprise to him as it had been to the others. After he had gotten back to Sioux Falls, he did some research into Angelic fledglings. Not much was written about them but there was one story that made him think. It talked about a fledgling that was found in Atlantis. This fledgling was curious about the way things worked so he started to take things apart. Atlantis, the story said, was highly advanced and one of the things that it had was a power plant…a nuclear power plant. When the fledgling found it, he was highly intrigued and started to take it apart. But he hadn't realized there had been safeties put in place to keep it from blowing up and he started on those. His brothers and sisters barely had time to get the people away from Atlantis before it blew up, never to be rebuilt again. There were even theories about the gas giants, Mars, Venus, even the rings of Saturn and the Khyber Belt being the results of curious fledglings.

Taking his packages out of the truck, he went in the Rectory calling, "Hi, I'm here!" as he did. Jim came down to meet him, looking exhausted. "What did those dickenses do now?" Bobby asked with a twinkle in his eye.

"I had to keep them from taking the stove, refrigerator, and washer apart. I swear they are worse than gremlins!" Jim grumbled. "I thought I was patient but those two…"

"Hopefully, I brought some stuff that will keep them busy for at least a few minutes," Bobby said. Then he went on to explain what his research had found. Jim turned pale with the thought of the children trying to satisfy their curiosity and tearing the town apart. "Naw, don't worry about it, Jimmy. You just have to be patient and find second hand things for them to work on. What really is surprising is at their age they could take a car apart without hurting themselves."

Jim was the one who now looked smug. "I think that Angels must age differently than us. If you heard the baby speak perfect Latin, you would have sworn you were talking to an adult. I just wish they knew English. Poor John is having problems trying to communicate with them because his conversational Latin is sketchy. You should have heard the kids laughing at his attempt. I ended up being the bad guy about the whole thing."

"I'm way ahead of you," Bobby said gleefully. "I got some flashcards and books to help teach them English. I do wonder why they can speak Latin and not English."

"It may have something to do with the development of Angels. Latin is a very old language after all. I have a feeling those two can speak Ancient Aramaic, Sanskrit, even the first language ever spoken but the modern ones are still out of their league," Jim hypothesized.

"Could be. Since _we're_ out of our league here anything can be possible. We knew that when you told us there were Angels in your house," Bobby jumped when he heard something crash upstairs but Jim just winced. "Let's get these things to the boys before your house comes down around our ears." Jim nodded in agreement.

When they entered the Winchesters' room, they found that it had been a dresser that made all the noise. The boys had become curious about the way it had been put together and, before John or Mary could stop them, they had decided to look behind it and the best way to do it for them was to tip it over. Jim just rolled his eyes and went to help John right the dresser as Bobby made his way over to a crying Mary. Seeing that she was at the end of her rope, he turned to the boys and gave them one of the small appliances that he had gotten for them. It was a microwave and, when he plugged it in, the boys were enthralled enough to focus totally on it.

When the boys were busy, Bobby told Mary, "I got them another appliance to take apart. I also got them some toys that they have to put together and a couple of aids to teach them English."

Mary smiled waterly and said, "Thanks Bobby. I really can't tell you how much I appreciate all your help."

Bobby patted her shoulder and said, "No problem, kid. Just trying to help."

"Will you be staying for a while?" John asked hopefully. Bobby couldn't help but crack a smile at the Great John Winchester being brought to his knees by a couple of toddlers.

"Sure, besides I'm going to help you put Jim's car back together," Bobby said easily. Both Winchesters and Jim gave a great sigh of relief.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

Bobby's solutions actually worked. The boys were kept busy with the used appliances and toys that he had brought while Mary taught them English using the flashcards. They learned the language very fast and now could speak it like they had all along. John was just happy now that he could talk to them directly, especially when he found Dean in Jim's study.

"Dean, don't do that!" John said when the five year old decided to climb up the bookcases again.

"Why?" the toddler asked the dreaded question.

"I don't want you to get hurt," John responded.

"But I won't," pouted the boy.

"If you don't come down, you won't be able to play with Samuel," John threatened using the only thing that Dean truly feared.

The boy jumped down, giving John a slight heart attack, "Sam."

"What?"

"He doesn't like Samuel. Zach calls him that and he's mean," the little boy revealed.

"Okay, Sam. Uh, Dean?"

"Yeah?"

"Who's Zach?" John asked.

Dean just shrugged and John tried again, remembering something Mary said Samu…er Sam had said, "Is he your bad brother?" Dean's eyes went wide and he curled into a ball, his wings hiding him from the man's sight. John's heart broke at the fear he could see radiating from the child. "Dean…son you're safe here. You and Sam are safe, I promise but we need to know what happened so we can protect you."

At first, Dean mumbled the words and John had to strain to hear what he said, "Bad brother hurt us. Took us away from happy and gave us to…it. It hurt me and Sammy. Why?" The little boy lifted his face to reveal tears running down his face. "We weren't bad. We wanted to go home and it hurt us when we asked to just go home!" John couldn't stand the child's pain so he gathered Dean into his arms and held him, rocking back and forth in comfort for both of them.

After Dean finished crying, John asked, "Do you want to go see Sammy?" Dean nodded and the man stood up with him and they went upstairs to find the baby. When they got to the room that was now the boys', Dean wriggled down and, grabbing his brother, went to the bed where he curled around Sam, hiding them with his wings. Now John understood why they usually kept each other in sight. He sighed and left the boys but kept the door open in case they needed him.

That night after the boys went to sleep, John told the others what Dean had said. Jim knew that Dean's reaction was a set back from the progress the boys had been making. For the last few days, they were able to be apart from each other for an hour or so. Now, Jim feared that they would be back at square one. Bobby didn't say anything but he thought everyone feared something that wouldn't happen. Yeah, Dean had been traumatized when he relived what happened but something about the children made Bobby think they were stronger than the other realized.

After talking for a while more, Jim looked at the clock and excused himself. He had a Service to perform the next day and he needed to finish up a few things for it before retiring for the night. Bobby yawned and, taking the hint, the Winchesters also excused themselves to go to bed. Bobby smiled then laid down on the couch, pulling a blanket up around him. After a few minutes he fell asleep. It took only an hour before the whole household was sleeping soundly. Nobody was awake to see four figures looking around then going up to the children's room.

_Sighing in relief, the four brothers stood around the babies. Michael was extremely glad that just a few things had been the victims of the fledglings' curiosity. Balthazar had already put the car back together while Castiel took care of the appliances. Gabriel and Michael both put up sigils to protect the grounds against demons and other Angels. They had heard what Dean said about a bad brother which confirmed what they suspected, one of their siblings had taken the children from their Sanctuary. _

_Gabriel looked worriedly at his older brother and said, "Mikey, we can't bring them back Home. Not without finding the traitor who gave them to that demon."_

"_I know, Gabriel. I want them Home just as much as you do but you're right. It's not safe now," Michael said with sorrow in his voice._

"_What do we do? If we leave them here, they could accidently hurt someone. If we bring them Home, they could be taken again. How can we protect them now?" Castiel asked._

_Michael looked at his worried three brothers and thought for a while. When a plan was finally formed, he said, "We leave them here but two of us must stay. Gabriel, you and Castiel stick around. Try to get close to our brothers, maybe volunteer to watch them. Balthazar, you come with me and we'll look for the traitor. We'll come around every so often to help out with the fledglings. Tomorrow, we'll make ourselves known to the humans so they know they aren't alone in this. From what I've observed, the Winchesters would have made perfect parents and their friends are great Uncle material. If it takes very long to find the traitor, that's what they'll have to be."_

_Even though they weren't happy about the situation, the others nodded their agreements. Michael knew how his brothers felt, he felt the same way. It didn't sit right with them to leave their baby brothers so unprotected. Every supernatural creature would be drawn to them like the vampire alpha had been. Even if the creature could protect them, it would have set itself up as a target. Then there were the demons who would love to get their hands on the fledglings to either turn them to evil or to use them as hostages after torturing the children. They had already been beaten by the demon who took them from the rogue and the four brothers wished it wasn't dead so they could kill it slowly. Michael's plan to leave the boys with Hunters was the best they could do besides locking them in one of the Vatican's vaults. For the rest of the night, the guardians stood vigil over their precious brothers leaving only when Sam started to cry in the morning, alerting Mary to the fact he was hungry. _

Jim pestered John, Mary and Bobby into attending his Service. Because the boys actually behaved themselves in Church, he invited them also. As the Church filled that morning, he didn't see the four strangers come in, one by one, to sit at the four corners of the room. Michael went in first and sat under the stained glass window depicting how humans thought he looked. He looked at the window admiring the craftsmanship at the same time wondering if he should be horrified, flattered or amused. Like usual, the window showed him as a muscular blond man wielding a sword. Michael didn't look anything like that since he had dark hair and green eyes. He was tall and wiry, nothing like the picture. The only thing that the artist got right was his sword, sort of.

Gabriel was the next one in the church. He too sat under his picture even though he thought it made him look insipid. His hair was a rich golden color and his eyes were butterscotch but the picture showed him as a light haired blond with blue eyes. The artist didn't even have the decency to do his wings right. His real wings were six in number and spanned fourteen feet when he was in human form. Like his hair, they were a rich gold color, not like the white, two winged creature depicted in the window. Then there was the matter of his horn. The true horn was made of the same material as his sword (which the humans never show him having!) and it was a very unique shape. Not the gold bugle the humans show him playing. "Dad! They never get it right," he grumbled to himself.

The Church filled up slowly with the Winchesters and Bobby sitting near the back since the boys were with them. John also wanted not just a quick get-away for the boys but also for himself. He always felt uncomfortable in Church. It made Castiel chuckle since he found this Church comforting in a way most Churches were not. Castiel was sitting behind the Winchesters and Gabriel while Balthazar was behind Michael in the back. All four corners were covered by the four guardians protecting the worshippers and their baby brothers.

That morning, Jim gave an interesting sermon on patience. He told the congregation that God must be ninety percent patience because of His children. Curious, impatient, fearful, angry, loving and joyful were a few of the attributes that any parent had to deal with when it came to their children but since God's children numbered in the billions, patience coupled with love was the biggest part of His feelings, Jim stated. Silently, the four Angels laughed. They knew that Jim was actually talking about their brothers. Michael and Gabriel had the distinct pleasure of being guardians to many of their numerous siblings and knew what Jim was talking about. There were many times they felt like dropping a few of their siblings in the sun or down a volcano but usually they could stop themselves from acting on those compulsions. Usually.

As the service went on, the Angels could feel their Father's presence even stronger than they had since He had decided to take a vacation. Michael knew that his steps were correct but was still glad that Father approved. Now, all they had to do was to convince the Hunters to let Gabriel and Cas work at the Church so they could be close to the fledglings. Of course, they could just be invisible but it would be harder for all concern, besides, it would also tell their siblings where they were. Until they found the traitor, they would have to be careful and do things as human as possible. Since the fledglings were very young, their powers couldn't be detected by any fully grown Angel. They were just too scattered for that to happen.

Finally, the Service was done and the Pastor stood just inside the door, thanking people for coming. Cas was the first of the brothers to reach him. "It was a real nice service. I liked your sermon on patience. You must have experience with children?" Cas was trying to be subtle but he had limited experience with humans so he didn't really understand the concept.

"Er…yes, my friends are staying with me and they have two small children," Jim revealed. "They are very curious and get into almost everything that isn't nailed down." Cas laughed at that, remembering his own fledgling-hood. While he was talking to the minister, Balthazar arrived and grinned.

"My cousin here was like that when he was young," Balthazar said with an evil grin. "He also had a way of disappearing on you if you didn't have him directly in front of you. Even then, you needed to touch him just to make sure that it really was him."

John, Mary, Bobby and the boys stood behind the two strangers and started to laugh, especially when the dark haired young man started to blush furiously. "You sound like you had your hands full with your cousin," Bobby observed.

"Not like some of his siblings or mine but he did give me a run for my money," Balthazar chortled.

"_You are only a few years older than me, brother!" _Cas projected. Balthazar just grinned at him.

"Do you live around here or are you just visiting?" Jim asked.

"My brother and I were thinking about settling down here. It is a nice town but I am wondering about jobs," Cas said, remembering what Michael had wanted for him to do.

"Oh, did your brother come with you?" Mary asked for the first time.

Gabriel came up behind Cas and gave him a brotherly smack then said, "I'm his older and more handsome brother. Gabriel is my name and this one's name is Castiel. Our Father was big on Angelic names believing that if we were named after an Angel, that particular one would be our guardian." He saw the looks that passed between Bobby and Jim so he had to say something about their names. He knew that they had seen the bracelets on the fledglings and probably knew that the sigils on the right ones were the names of their protectors. "It can be a bitch some days especially when you have a religious nut asking if you're an Angel. Our brother, Mikey, has it worse than us, though."

Michael chose that moment to walk up behind Gabriel and smacked him on the back of his head. Gabriel rubbed his head and glared at Michael. "Told you I don't like that name, _Gabe_!" Michael glared back.

"Please can we not do that now? We'll never accomplish anything with the two of you going at it," Balthazar snarled. Both brothers looked at him with chagrinned looks. Then he said apologetically to the humans, "I have to apologize to you for them. It's been a very hard trip and neither of them had a nap yet today." Balthazar was very happy neither brother could actually kill him with the laser looks they were giving him.

While the adults were watching the newcomers, Dean quietly walked towards Castiel. Tugging on his older brother's wing, he said in Enochian, _"Up, please."_ Without thinking about it, Cas reached down and picked the toddler up. _"Missed you. Where were you?"_ Dean asked again in Enochian.

"_Looking for you and Sam. What happened, little brother? Who took you away from the Sanctuary?" _Cas answered back automatically in the same language.

"_I don't know, I was put to sleep but Sammy saw him. He said it was a bad brother who took us away and gave us to the black-eyes,"_ Dean said. _"Can we go home, now?"_

"_Not yet, baby brother. We need to find the one who did this, who started this to make sure he never takes you away again. Did the black-eyes say anything to you?" _Cas questioned. His heart broke when he saw the look on Dean's face when he said they weren't taking the boys Home.

Dean looked at his brother with teary eyes and said, _"It said we should have been born human. It said that Daddy made a mistake making us like we are. Sammy was supposed to be Luc' vess…vess..."_

"_Vessel?" _Michael asked having heard the conversation between his brothers. He didn't care that there were humans listening to them since getting the information was more important to him. Then he took the baby out of Mary's arms gently. Smiling at Sam, he asked gently, _"Baby, what did the mean brother look like?" _Sam just shook his head and burrowed into Michael's neck. _"Did he say he would hurt Dean or us if you said anything?" _Michael felt Sam's slight nod and had to calm down a bit before continuing. _"Baby, you know that we'll protect you and your brother. We just need to know who gave you to the black-eyes. I know you're scared but I also know how brave you are. I need you to be brave and tell me who it was so we can make sure you will be safe."_

Sam looked at his older brother with tears in his eyes. He didn't want to say it out loud just in case that brother was listening so he whispered it in Michael's ear, _"Uriel did it."_ Michael stiffened. Uriel had a lot of friends and followers who wanted their brother out of his Cage. It made sense since Uriel had stayed away from the Sanctuary claiming that their newest brothers should never have been made Angels even though their Father made it so. He had gone on to say that the children were supposed to be born into the vessels of Michael and Lucifer so they could have the apocalypse. It was one of the ways the apocalypse was to have played out but, for reasons that their Father didn't give to anyone except the four guardians, Sam and Dean were born as fledgling angels, Dominions in fact, born to walk among the humans observing and helping them.

Father had come to the four and shown them a future where a child was fed the blood of a fallen brother when he was six months old. The child was condemned even though he had no free will in the first place as to what was happening and it just didn't sit right with the brothers. When they found that the child was also to have an older brother their hearts broke and they asked their Father for a favor. They asked that the children be born Angels instead of humans. Michael explained that he had no wish to fight his brother any time soon and he didn't want to condemn any other pair of siblings to do so either. Gabriel said that the fighting was tearing him apart and the younger Angels never knew Heaven in peaceful times. Father agreed to their request providing they would become the new fledglings' Guardians. The four agreed happily and the newest Angels were born soon after.

At first, when Dean was born, Castiel was a bit jealous but when Michael put the newest fledgling in his arms, the love he felt was overwhelming and tears came to his eyes. Michael just nodded knowingly since he also felt the same kind of emotion the first time he held a baby brother. Then, four years later, Samuel was brought to the Sanctuary. Castiel put the baby in Dean's arms and watched the same transformation happen to the fledgling that had happened to him. With his other brothers, Castiel made a happy family for the two newborn Angels. Finally, after many millennia, there was Angelic laughter in Heaven once more. Now, that return to joy was being threatened by Uriel and his followers and Michael refused to let anything happen to jeopardize the source of that happiness.

To let the humans know what is happening, Michael spoke in English to his brothers, "Gabriel, Castiel the plan for the two of you hasn't changed. You need to stay close to our brothers and keep everyone here safe. Sammy told me who the one who took them away from Sanctuary is. It was Uriel and he will stop at nothing to harm the boys, you know that. So take extreme measures if the circumstances call for it." Then, turning to Balthazar, Michael said, "We'll need to talk to some of the others in helping us find and eliminate Uriel's friends. I hate to do that but if we don't, they'll rip the fledglings' Graces out and cause them to be born human so they can start the Apocalypse. Watch out for Zachariah. I don't know what side he's on but he's dangerous to the boys. I saw how Sam reacted to him the last time he was in Sanctuary." The others nodded gravely. Then Michael turned his attention to the humans whose mouths were open in shock.

"I have a favor to ask of you," Michael began. "I know you are aware of what we are?" Four heads nodded. "Good, that takes out a huge amount of explanations and we just don't have time for it. One thing you need to know is that Sam and Dean could have been born human except that our Father decided to have them born Angels. Mary, you and John would have been their parents but, because of that deal you made for John's life, you would have been killed by Azazel, one of our fallen brothers. He then would have dripped his blood into Sammy's mouth and marked him as Lucifer's vessel. Father stopped that from happening but you didn't have the children you would have had. Now is your chance to be parents. We need to keep our brothers off of Uriel and Zachariah's radars in order to keep them safe. To do that, we want you to raise our brothers like your own children." He gave the baby back to Mary who accepted the child gladly.

"H-h-how do we do that?" Mary stammered. "They have Angelic powers that we couldn't even begin to understand. How do we punish them for being bad or how do we stop them from running away?"

"Um…how do we stop them from destroying things just because they wanted to see how it worked?" John asked.

"That's where Gabriel and Castiel come in. They will stay with you to watch over our brothers," Michael answered patiently.

"Everyone knows that we don't associate with family," John said. "What do we tell the other hunters we run across?"

Michael grinned wickedly and looked at the two in question. Gabriel started to back up while Castiel was looking for a place to hide. Before they got too far, Michael snapped his fingers and a light encompassed both of them. When the light died down, the humans saw that instead of two grown men, two young boys, one about ten and the other about fifteen, now stood in front of them.

The new boys looked down at themselves in horror. Cas wanted to vanish into the earth while Gabriel was pissed almost beyond words. "De-aged?! You de-aged us! We could have been the gay couple across the street but you had to de-age us?" The small Archangel screamed.

Balthazar just laughed and turned to his brother, "Aren't they cute at that age?" Michael cracked up while the humans just looked puzzled. Finally, after catching his breath, Michael said, "To the world, the Winchesters have four children. Gabriel is an adopted child while Castiel is the result of your honeymoon. By the way, his human name should be James, for John's father." John nodded a bit numbly and Michael smiled, "Gabriel and Castiel may look like fledglings but remember they are full Angels with all their powers. They will be able to help you with our brothers and also be able to protect you from anyone who comes to harm you."

"What about schooling and doctor visits?" Mary, the ever practical one, asked.

"Homeschooling actually is a good idea," Balthazar said. "The schools won't be wondering why Gabriel eats all the candy he can get his hands on or why the bully in the high school was found green from head to toe. And the councilors won't be wondering why Castiel seems to be so awkward in social situations. This also gives the boys room to be themselves before teaching them to hide their wings from humans. You remember how traumatic that was for the others?"

Michael looked sad as he replied, "Every one of the fledglings wondered if they were freaks since they had to hide part of who they were. Anna came to me crying, wondering why Father had given her wings when she had to hide them from humans. I had to tell her that most humans couldn't see our true forms or their eyes would melt out of their heads. It was worse for the Cherubim since they have four faces. I must have held each and every one of them while they cried."

Jim asked a question that was bugging him, "You say that only special people can see Angelic forms but why can we see the boys' wings without being hurt?"

"There are a couple of reasons for that," Balthazar replied. "One is that you do fall into that very small, blessed group of humans who can see us for who we really are. You were the one who figured out that our brothers were Angels, after all. The other is that they are Dominions, the ones who look human but have wings. They were to walk among humans when they got older but it looks as though they will be starting their work very early in their lives."

"Also, their health should be taken care of by the doctor you had originally seen. He can also see the fledglings' wings without sustaining damage," Michael said.

"How do you know about that?" John asked.

"Dean still holds a grudge against the man who hurt his brother. I can feel it and also read his mind," Michael explained. "Fledglings may have scattered brains but they don't forget anything that they experience or is told."

"Oh," John replied.

"Don't worry about him hurting the doctor. Just make sure either Gabriel or Castiel are with you when the man is here. They can make sure that there are no problems and head them off if there are," Michael assured the new father. "Now, the only thing we have to worry about is where to have you live."

Bobby and Jim both spoke up at the same time, "It's okay for them to live with me." The men looked at each other and blushed. The boys had come to mean so very much to the two men that Michael didn't have the heart to really part them from the fledglings. Thinking for a minute he came up with a plan.

"They can stay where there is enough room for the six of them but I'll make sure they have an instant 'doorway' to the other home. Both of the places are very well protected so there shouldn't be a problem with demons or other creatures coming to kidnap our brothers. You will have to figure out where you want to live, that's all," Michael stated. He then waved his hand and caused two duffle bags to appear, full of clothes for his now younger brothers. "Balthazar and I have to leave to take care of business but if you need us, just call our names. Good luck." With that, the two larger Angels disappeared, the sound of wings filled the air.

John and Mary looked at their new sons with wonder. After all the years of being childless, they were now the proud parents of an Archangel, a protector Angel and two fledgling Dominions. Mary cleared her throat and asked, "Um, who's hungry?"


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

3 years later-

Gabriel grinned as he watched eight year old Dean stretch his wings for his very first flight. Sammy wasn't taking the news that he would be the only earth bound Angel at the moment well and wanted to try to fly also but Cas told him that his wings just weren't strong enough. The older Angels expected a big blowup but that wasn't Sammy's way. Instead he wouldn't go with the others for Dean's lesson, preferring to be by himself. Cas was worried since Sam stopped talking to them where before he was a constant chatterbox but Gabriel said that all fledglings go through the kind of jealousy that Sam was going through and they all reacted differently. Castiel, watching Balthazar fly for the first time, ended up running away to Atlantis, for example. Sam hid within himself so deeply that the bond he shared with Dean didn't even register his presence even when he stood close to his brother. It worried the others but Gabriel knew that Dean needed to be taught how to fly even if it meant Sam having hurt feelings.

Taking off for the first time, Dean smiled widely. He loved the way his muscles felt with the rhythm of his beating wings and the wind in his hair. Gabriel flew next to the fledgling to make sure nothing would happen to his precious little brother. After about an hour, Gabriel noticed that Dean was tiring and called the lesson at an end. When Dean grumbled about it, Gabriel laughed and told him there would be other lessons in the future. Landing was a bit trickier but luckily all the practice he had after flying up the bookcases at Jim's home paid off finally. As he landed, Dean couldn't help but feel a bit upset at Sam's reaction even though he was told it was perfectly natural. What really upset him was that Sam was hiding from everyone. He just hoped his baby brother would come around soon and not be such a bitch about not being able to fly yet. He knew that Sam was hurting about not being able to fly and wanted to do something to lift his brother's spirits so he made a plan to talk to Gabriel about taking Sam up and flying around with him. Dean would have rather do it himself but he knew that he just wasn't strong enough to do it.

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Sam wandered around the house. This was the first time that he and his brother had been separated for so long and it felt bad. Dean had been his constant, his everything ever since he was born but now it seemed as though he was being left behind. At four, this was a very heavy burden and nobody seemed to care. Sure, mom and dad were great but they didn't understand his need to be with his brother. Sam felt like a burden, a freak in the family. He had wings but he wasn't allowed to fly. Gabriel had told him that he needed to build up strength in his muscles before he could be in the air. His brother even gave him exercises but what fun was that when he was by himself?

Unfortunately, his mom and dad were busy. There was a hunt they were researching for Uncle Rufus. Uncle Jim was also busy with his church so he didn't have any time for the four year old. Gabriel and Cas were teaching Dean how to fly, so there wasn't anything there. That just left Uncle Bobby. Sammy smiled then went to the door that led to his Uncle's house. He loved the older man who gave him cookies, spent time with him and had all those wonderful machines he could take apart but when he arrived, Uncle Bobby was not there. Sammy looked around with no results until he looked out the window and saw a truck waiting outside with its engine running. He grinned then, with a skill that belied his age, teleported out by the truck. Knowing the door was too heavy for him to open, he went to the truck bed and, with a short hop, landed in the back. He was excited about going out of the safety zone that Michael had set up since that meant he could see the outside world. He barely remembered seeing it when he and Dean had been taken from the vampires and he was curious. Curling up in a blanket that he found there, he promptly fell asleep.

Bobby and Rufus got the last bit of information that Mary and John were able to find out about the new hunt. There had been demon signs in Fargo, North Dakota that they were going to check out. Gabriel had taught the Hunters a new exorcism that was guaranteed to work 100% of the time and also taught them how to draw sigils that would confine the demon to one area without hurting the host. They had already packed the truck with their gear so they didn't look in the back of the truck…they should have.

It took the Hunters five hours to get to Fargo and the site of the demon signs. It was in a warehouse on the Northern edge of town. After locating the site, they went to go to a motel. Bobby checked in then the two men went to the room, thinking that they would get their gear after they ate. When they got back from the diner, it was too dark to really see into the back of the truck. Rufus managed to get their gear without disturbing the sleeping fledgling then he joined Bobby in the room for the night. When Sammy woke up, he was hungry. He spotted a vending machine not too far from the truck and, being intrigued by the new kind of machine, he went to check it out. Seeing the food in it and being very curious, Sammy had the machine taken apart within minutes. Gathering some of the food to himself, he then saw a soda machine which ended up having the same treatment as the vending machine. Carrying what he wanted, he went back to the truck and jumped into the back. Happily, he ate his food and drank some of the soda before wrapping his wings around him and curling up underneath a blanket left in the truck bed. Again, he was hidden from plain sight so when the Hunters came out of their motel room, they didn't see him. They did, however, notice a repairman fixing the two machines that Sammy managed to tear apart.

Before Rufus had gotten Bobby for the hunt, he had done the preliminary interviews so he knew that the guard, who had survived an attack, saw his buddy with black eyes just before he was thrown out of the window. Rufus also confirmed the presence of sulfur on the warehouse grounds, so there wasn't much to do except the exorcism. Since the possessed person worked the graveyard shift, they knew they had to get to the warehouse before six. It sounded easy but, like many hunts, it went pear-shaped fast.

Writing the sigils on all four of the walls was the only easy part of the hunt. Rufus took point with Bobby at his back. They entered the building carefully, listening for footsteps to tell them where their prey was. Rufus went to the middle of the warehouse and, using an invisible ink pen, drew a demon trap on the floor. When he was done, he nodded to Bobby who was hidden in the shadows. Then, Rufus started to make loud noises to catch the guard's attention. It didn't take long for the man to rush out to where Rufus was but that's where everything went south.

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When Dean got back from his lesson, he automatically went looking for his brother. Something didn't feel right to him, like something was missing. When he couldn't find Sammy in their room, he started to panic. Ever since Sam started to close himself off from everyone, Dean had a very hard time finding his brother through their bond. Sammy couldn't hide completely but enough where making locating him extremely hard. But now, nothing. Not even a blip on the radar and Dean _knew_ something was wrong. When he started to call out Sammy's name, Mary and John came out of their office at the same time Gabriel and Cas appeared beside the fledgling.

"What's wrong, sweetie?"

"Dean, what's going on?"

"Kiddo, we could hear you outside. What's up?"

Mary, John and Gabriel spoke at the same time, confusing Dean but it was Castiel, who waited until the din died down, asked the important question, "Dean, where's Sam?"

Turning to his brother, Dean's green eyes were filled with tears as he said, "I don't know. He's not here. Cas, can you help me find him?" All four nodded, of course they would help Dean find Sammy they assured the worried brother. Remembering what they had been told about adult Angels not being able to find the fledglings with just a thought, Mary started to scour the house while John went to the garage and shed. Gabriel and Castiel turned over every stone, leaf and log in the woods surrounding the house. When the four were finished at their place, they decided to go to Jim's to see if Sam was there. With Dean leading the way, they went to the door that led to Jim's, curtsey of Michael.

Jim was startled when the Winchesters showed up in his house but was quickly on board when he found out that Sammy was missing. Since Jim's place was large, it took them four hours to thoroughly check it out but there still wasn't a small fledgling anywhere. By this time, Dean was getting very upset. It took Cas putting him asleep that saved Jim's house from Dean's frustrations. As it was, Gabriel had a few holes to fix for the Pastor. Since both the Winchester and Murphy homes had been searched, that left only one other place that Sammy could go without an escort. That was Bobby's. Mary was getting nervous herself since she and John had done some research for the older Hunter regarding demon sign in Fargo.

"Do…do you think he would have gone to Bobby's?" she asked with trepidation.

"That's the only place we haven't searched yet, why?" Gabriel asked worriedly. He could see something was bothering his foster mother.

Instead of answering him right away, Mary turned to John and asked, "John, when did Bobby leave for the hunt?"

"I really don't know. He was waiting for Rufus to come back after the interviews," John responded. "I think it was sometime in the afternoon."

"Jim, what time is it now?" Mary inquired of the Pastor. Jim looked at his watch as said, "Almost midnight. Mary, what's going on?"

"We need to check Bobby's place now!" she said running to the door that led to Bobby's. The men and Archangel followed, leaving Castiel to watch over Dean.

When they got to Bobby's, Mary started to search the house carefully. Since it was a two story house with a basement and attic with three bedrooms on the second floor, a den, living room, and kitchen on the first, it took her a couple of hours to satisfy her that Sammy wasn't in the house. John took the garage and outbuildings while Gabriel and Jim searched the yard. It was Gabriel who found Sammy's footprints by a set of tire tracks. Knowing that Bobby would never intentionally take Sammy out of the safety zone, he surmised that the fledgling had stowed away in Bobby's truck. Something was bugging him and he turned to Mary.

"Mom," Gabriel asked calling Mary by the name he had gotten in the habit of using. "You said that Bobby was on a demon hunt?"

"All signs pointed to demonic possession of a warehouse guard," she related. "Why?"

"Remember when Uriel took my brothers from Sanctuary, he gave them to a demon?" The three humans nodded. Gabriel then said, "May I see your research on this hunt? I have a bad feeling but I don't want to say anything until I'm sure." Mary went and retrieved the file that was on Bobby's desk then gave it to Gabriel who took a few seconds to read it. He was pale when he finished the file. "It's a trap," was all he said before he disappeared.

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The demon had caught them. No question about it but he had help. When the demon was caught in the trap, another man came out and erased part of it after throwing Rufus into the wall. Bobby rushed out to help his friend and got the same treatment. Now, both of them were tied up with the mystery man waving a knife in their faces. It really didn't take a genius to figure out that they were facing one of Uriel's friends. They were a bit wrong there, they were in Uriel's presence.

"Ahhh, two of the mudmonkeys who are hiding the abominations. I was hoping that we would meet. In fact, I was the one who set this whole thing up," Uriel gloated.

"What do you want?" Bobby asked, knowing the answer.

"I want my brother out of his Cage and the only way to do that is to insure his vessel walks the earth. You two are going to be my bargaining chips to make that happen," Uriel answered. "First, though, I think I'll just make some alterations to the way you two look. That should let your friends know that I am very serious. Then, we will talk about giving me those damnable abominations so I can have my brother back." He drew his arm back, aiming the blade for Bobby's face when he was attacked by a furious fledgling. Sammy had seen his bad brother threaten the man who had helped to take care of him and Dean, the man he called Uncle. It really made him mad and, with no thought to his own safety, he burst into the warehouse and attacked.

Sammy flew into Uriel's face and began to bite and claw at the Angel's vessel. Uriel screamed in pain then dropped the knife by Bobby who was able to maneuver until he could pick it up and he used it to free Rufus who then sawed on the ropes holding Bobby. While the Hunters were freeing themselves, Uriel managed to dislodge the furious fledgling and throw him into a wall, stunning him. The older Angel stalked over to the semi-conscious four year old child where he began to kick and punch the child. He didn't notice as the bracelet on Sammy's right wrist began to glow. He was too busy trying to kill Sammy to notice the arrival of his brothers who were very angry.

Bobby and Rufus noticed. The building began to shake, a high-pitched tone sounded and a bright light began. Bobby put his hand over Rufus' eyes since he didn't know if Rufus was one of the special people who could see an Angel in his true form. A bright flash temporarily blinded Bobby but when his eyesight cleared, he saw two extremely angry Archangels and one warrior standing behind Uriel who finally felt his brothers' arrival. Swiftly turning around, he confronted his brothers by bringing out a sword. Michael and Gabriel responded by revealing their own swords while Balthazar ran to the battered and unconscious child. Picking him up, Balthazar then brought him to Bobby's side.

"Get them out of here," Michael ordered. "This is not for their eyes." Balthazar nodded then, while Bobby was holding Sammy, he touched Bobby and Rufus. As quick as a blink, Bobby and Rufus found themselves at Jim's in the room that had been designated the boys' room. Balthazar took Sammy from Bobby and laid him next to his brother. Castiel's eyes grew moist as he saw the damage the little fledgling had sustained and he, along with his brother, laid his hands on the tiny body.

A glow emitted from their hands and spread to encompass the child. As the humans watched, every cut, bruise and broken bone healed leaving just smooth skin behind. Then the Angels removed their hands and waited. It seemed like an eternity until they heard a slight sigh and soft snoring coming from their youngest brother. To everyone in the room, it was a miracle that the baby would survive. Each in their own way thanked Father for His mercy. Castiel then put Sammy close to his brother who automatically turned towards the baby. Dean put his arms and wings around Sammy, hiding him from sight. Before both boys were covered, Bobby noticed that their left bracelets glowed, re-establishing their bond.

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One Month Later-

Gabriel was insistent. Dean needed to learn how to fly well but he was reluctant to leave his brother's side. Even though everyone had said what happened to Sammy wasn't his fault, Dean felt guilty that his baby brother had almost died at Uriel's hands. He knew that Sammy had been upset about being the only earth-bound Angel and that's what caused him to run away. Everyone was at a loss about what to do until Michael came up with a solution. It had been the same one Dean thought of before he found his brother was missing.

When he finally was coaxed back into flying, Gabriel and Castiel flew with him. Balthazar stayed on the ground to watch the trio when Michael came flying up to them holding his precious burden. Sammy laughed in his brother's arms and Dean echoed him.

"C'mon Sammy, flap your wings and build up your muscles so we can fly together!" Dean encouraged.

Michael held Sammy a little bit away from his body so the fledgling's wings had free movement. Together, Sammy and Dean flew until Gabriel called a halt to the lesson then the five of them landed near Mary who had prepared a picnic lunch for them, her, John, Bobby, Rufus, Castiel and Jim. They were celebrating Dean's lesson, Sammy's health and Mary's pregnancy.

When Mary found that she was finally pregnant, she became hysterical because she thought that meant the boys would be leaving her. Michael, who never said what he did to Uriel that day, assured her that Father still wanted her and John to be parents to Sammy and Dean. There still was a danger to them in Heaven from Uriel's followers and Michael was very reluctant to bring them back to the Sanctuary. Besides, he said, it was fun to be part of a very special family. The Virtues had been given the task of locating the treasonous Angels and Michael was now known to the human world as John's brother while Balthazar was Mary's cousin. Both Angels lived with the Winchesters along with their brothers.

There was still an apocalypse to avert. Azazel was out there waiting until his special children grew up and into their powers. There were demons to defeat as well as other Fallen Angels and the fledglings needed to be trained but the other Angels knew their brothers would be the defenders they needed to be. Sammy's own self-sacrifice for Rufus and Bobby showed that fighting for others was instinctual and already a part of who they were. Their fight was in the future, now was the time for them to be innocent children. Michael and his brothers were determined to give their brothers the best childhood possible.

_I hope you liked this story. Please feed the dragon and review! Thanks!_


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